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ago 03 2026Patty Mills appears determined to stay with ASVEL Villeurbanne despite the upheaval facing the French club. According to BeBasket, the Australian point guard will honor his agreement with Tony Parker's project, even though the club has had to drastically slash its financial projections.
The situation carries symbolic weight for ASVEL. In recent days, the club has seen parts of the roster it was building for next season fall apart. Sylvain Francisco ended up leaving for Panathinaikos without making his debut, and Armoni Brooks is also expected to depart after accepting the French offer.
Mills, however, appears to be taking a different path. His personal relationship with Parker matters. Both shared a locker room with the San Antonio Spurs NBA championship team in 2014, and that bond reportedly has been crucial in keeping the Australian from abandoning the project at its darkest hour.
For ASVEL, keeping him would mean more than retaining a name. It would mean maintaining a competitive reference point, a player with craft, leadership, and the ability to sustain offenses in crucial moments. In a summer where the club has gone from imagining a budget of €59 million to having to adjust to €24 million, every piece that stays counts double.
Mills arrives after a very solid season with La Laguna Tenerife. In Liga Endesa, he averaged 18.1 points per game and delivered several impactful performances, including 36 points against Barcelona and 29 against Real Madrid in a historic playoff victory.
At 37 years old, he no longer needs to build his resume. What he can offer ASVEL is something very concrete: points, experience, composure, and a respected figure within a locker room that will need stability.
ASVEL still has much to resolve. But if Mills keeps his word, Tony Parker will at least retain one solid foundation amid a reconstruction far more complicated than anticipated.
